Jeannie merely nods smugly.
“Well, I hope the two of youarehappy together because you guys are the two best things to ever happen in my life, so it seems perfect. And again, I couldn’t be happier for you guys.”
We’re both stunned by this series of revelations, but maybe we shouldn’t be, seeing that my ex has always been the queen of unpredictability. I squeeze Cleo’s hand under the table, and the curvy girl squeezes back because we’ve been blown away by the events of this lunch alone. Who knows what else my ex will have in store?
“Thank you, Mom,” Cleo murmurs quietly. “Your blessing means a lot to us.”
“Of course,” Jeannie nods before turning to stare at me. “But you better take good care of my daughter, Brody, because if I hear even one peep of dissatisfaction from Cleo, you’ll be taking the worst shit of your life. Trust me. You don’t want your toilet overflowing because of this gunk, if you even make it to the toilet in time.”
I chuckle, holding my palms up in defense. “You don’t have to worry, ma’am, because I wouldn’t dream of harming a hair on your daughter’s head, let alone breaking her heart. Cleo’s in safe hands with me.”
“Good,” Jeannie says with a smug smile. “Then let’s get this show on the road because I’m starving. You would’t believe the slop they serve when you’re behind bars. I swear, I’m going to write a letter to the governor himself.”
With that, we’re off once more as my ex-wife regales us with stories from her time behind bars. I’m listening, but at the same time, I’m looking at Cleo because my girl has finally relaxed for the first time since we discovered her ransacked room. Good. It seems that Jeannie has a purpose in all this, and I’m glad we’re charting out a path together.
9
CLEO
Two months later.
“I hate to say it but your school’s team kind of sucks,” Brody laughs before pushing a nacho into his mouth. I giggle, reaching over to steal one for myself.
“Trust me, you’re not telling me anything that I don’t already know. I’ve been to six of these basketball games so far and they haven’t won a single one yet,” I shake my head. “I swear, I want a refund on these season tickets.”
“Maybe they’ll be able to overcome?” Brody pauses as we watch the other team make yet another basket. “Or maybe not,” he says in a rueful tone, both of us sighing afterwards.
But I’m not really here for the basketball. The fact is that I love Coleman, and want to support it in any way possible, be it through ice hockey, football, or any kind of athletics. Plus, it’s nice to spend time with my boyfriend because we tend to go to Coleman U games together when he comes up during the weekends. After a grueling week of classes and studying, at least I have the weekends to look forward to.
Plus, Brody spoils me. For example, about a month ago, he set up a surprise photoshoot for me. It was after one of our usual late-night conversations where I admitted to being a total Disney fanatic.
“You? Really?” my man asked, laughter dancing in his eyes.
“Yes!” I squealed. “I used to have the cutestLittle Mermaidwatch, but Belle fromBeauty and the Beasthas actually always been my favorite character.”
“Why?” he asked, his blue eyes taking me in. “Because she has chestnut curls, just like you?”
“No, nothing so mundane,” I laugh. “It’s because Belle’s one of the few girls who isn’t a princess. It’s kind of nice, right? It seems all the other women are princesses or at least princesses in disguise whereas Belle’s just a regular girl from the French countryside.”
Brody merely grins.
“I admit that I’m not up on my Disney lore, so I’m not sure how the story goes, but you must be right.”
“I am!” I chirped in a perky tone. “Trust me on this one.”
But then, just a week later, Brody surprised me with aBeauty and the Beastthemed professional photoshoot. Okay, so it was a little hokey because I put on a big, poofy yellow ballgown, and stood around posing with a basket slung over my arm, but it was fun nonetheless. I tried to persuade Brody to dress up in the Beast costume the studio had, but he wasn’t having it.
“Absolutely not,” he growled. “No way,” he said, eyeing the blue waistcoat with epaulets on the shoulders with distaste.
“Please?” I wheedled.
But Brody stood firm, so it ended up being just me in the photos. It was fun, nonetheless, and I appreciate my man for being so thoughtful.
Now, the memory of the that experience has me smiling like an idiot as I wrap my hands around Brody’s strong arm and rest my head on his shoulder. We usually don’t engage in too much PDA since we’re keeping our relationship a secret, but realistically, we’re at a basketball game right now. The camera could pan over to us at any moment and catch us in this position. But I just don’t care anymore. I adore this man, and I want the world to know.
“What are you thinking about, sweetheart?” Brody smiles, nudging me. “You hardly reacted to that that terrible steal by the other team,” he chuckles.
I giggle, shrugging. “Not much. Really, I’m just thinking about how happy you make me.”